Teamwork!!! Let's go!

Working with game design inside a bigger team is usually a big challenge - and something I have been experiencing once again now with my new project. I had the uncomfortable position of coming in with a design already in place, and basically having to scrap it and start over. The hardest part is not doing it from scratch, or even fitting it to the briefed spec... but dealing with the previous designer, who I will need to work with for the rest of the project. Don't get me wrong, she is GREAT, and I don't think I could ever pull it off without her aid... but retooling someone's baby and getting the chemistry between everyone going can be tricky.

But there is a great upside. This is a small, independent project. And so, we can steer clear from the huge corporate pressure that a project would have in a bigger company. Why is this so meaningful? Well, I believe the current business practices tend to leave every single member of the team working separately on a self-contained aspect of the game... which is great if you are looking to be the most cost-effective possible, but forces a lot of people to work in a very abstract manner.

I like comparing videogames to Hollywood, in that the interactive media "grew up" too fast - or rather, almost not at all before it became widely commercial. And in doing so, didn't mature as media before it had to worry too much about being part of a well-oiled industry. Working on small independent projects allows one to have a much more concrete view of the project, and have every single member pitch in on almost every issue. And I am a strong believer that even a musician should give his opinion about gameplay, and a texture artist should have a say on the physics engine, and the programmer is great for finding solutions in just about every area (aren't they always?).

If anyone has a chance, I strongly reccomend watching the bonus disc that comes in the Special Edition of Metal Gear Solid 4, where you see Hideo Kojima's role in the production. He basically opinates in a very concrete manner in just about every area of the game. Sure, you gotta be Mr. Metal Gear himself and own your own production studio to be able to wiggle your way around the huge corporate overhead, but it still should be a lesson for anyone who wishes videogames to be treated as art someday.

And that is why I love my current project :) Our last meeting was great, with just about everyone vetting the design document I came up with. And the fact I had a say in the art direction and overall music direction gives me hope that this could be big. It will take time, certainly. But I believe I am doing the right thing.